LinkedIn is an important social media platform to have in your tool kit because it truly highlights your professional expertise. When LinkedIn revised the skills and endorsements section last year, I found that many people forgot about asking for recommendations.
Why should you obtain recommendations vs endorsements?
By obtaining a recommendation from a trusted source can really speak to the specifics of what you want to be recognized for. As an example, if you want to highlight your sales skills, than ask specifically for a recommendation that speaks to the growth in numbers that you gained in the execution of your job.
Recommendations set you apart
It is important to remember when someone is viewing your profile as a prospect they are reading your recommendations. If you have equal qualifications to another individual, it is often the glowing recommendations that can set you apart!
Update your recommendations
You can control what recommendations are shown on your profile and thus it is a good idea to keep current recommendations and not show ones that may be out of date or no longer quite as relevant to your current position. In other words, don’t set it and forget it, always keep asking for fresh recommendations.
How many should you get?
I am often asked how many recommendations should you have on your profile and my advice is to shoot for at least 10 glowing recommendations that share a broad testimonial of your skills and what you want to be known for.
Some last thoughts I have on this subject…in marketing sometimes we forget that we are always marketing ourselves and I want to remind you that relationships are built on the know, like, trust formula. Having at least 10 professional recommendations that speak to the trust factor from those who do business with us can easily make the difference in getting a job or losing it to a competitor.
Have your recommendations made a difference in your business? Please share your comments below.
